Potential Health Impacts, Treatments, and Countermeasures of Martian Dust on Future Human Space Exploration.

The challenges of human space exploration produce some of humanity's greatest technological and scientific advances, not excluding innovations in medicine. The microgravity environment causes a host of physiological changes, and exposure to dust on the Moon caused considerable pulmonary distress to astronauts during the Apollo missions. As the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and other organizations prepare for long-duration exploration missions to Mars, the hazards and consequences of the Martian surface need to be accounted for.